Leeds Rhinos have released a statement apologising to fans for heavy congestion in Headingley’s North Stand yesterday for the visit of Salford Red Devils.
The club share the stadium with the Yorkshire cricket team, who were also at home on the day, meaning large delays and, for some, obstructed views in the early stages of the match.
The statement said: “On behalf of the club, we would like to apologise to any supporters who were inconvenienced before kick off due to congestion entering the North Stand.
“The Easter Monday fixture saw the Rhinos play at home on the same day that Yorkshire CCC were at home in the County Championship. In recent years, we have had both teams at home on a number of occasions unfortunately the systems we have put in place for those games were not successful at this afternoon’s match.
“Clearly there are lessons to learn and we will revisit the plan for future games. Due to the success of our family entertainment around the shop concourse area, a significant number of supporters arrived at the same time 10 minutes before kick off which led to the congestion.
“We are not allowed to delay the kick off apart from on safety grounds, which this did not constitute, as the vast majority of fans in the 14,000 plus crowd were in place for the kick off. The queue was constantly being monitored by stewards on the ground and via CCTV to make sure that we got fans to their seats as quickly as possible but clearly that was not quick enough to avoid disappointment for those spectators.
“We would also like to apologise to those supporters who had arrived early to take up their seats in the Paddock Stand and were unable to enjoy fully the opening twenty minutes of the game due to the congestion in front of them.
We will continue to work hard to provide the best matchday experience possible for your visit to Headingley Carnegie and hope that the disruption at the start did not spoil your enjoyment of a well earned win.”
Want more Rugby League news and features? Subscribe to the online version of League Express newspaper and Rugby League World magazine. You can also connect with Total Rugby League on the social media platform of your choice.
The post Rhinos issue apology over stadium congestion appeared first on Rugby League news and Super League scores | Total Rugby League.